God's Revolver
by saltedpineapple
Summary: On his crusade to over throw as many kingdoms as possible Vector stumbles across a village that was burned to the ground caused by a sorcerer with a hidden secret that he he is one of three Guardians in charge of protecting the world's strongest weapon.
1. God's Revolver

The smoke sat heavy in the air as Vector's ship was finally able to dock at port behind the rest of his fleet. As he stepped onto the docks all he could hear was an eerie silence accompanied only by the snap and crackle of the wooden shops and straw huts that made up the village. Fire wasn't a normal tactic for his men, but that didn't stop the darkness from twisting across his face pleased with the destructive liberties his army had taken.

"Search for survivors, if they don't immediately surrender execute them." Vector ordered and the remaining soldiers fanned out into the village disappearing into the smoke.

Vector too stepped off the dock and made his way into the destruction. The air around him was hot away from the sea's cool breeze. It felt strangely comfortable, like a warm embrace congratulating him, and the smell of seared flesh and bone welcoming him home. As he made it further into the town the ground became more scorched; the bottom of his feet feeling the burn through the soles of his sandals. The smoke was thicker further into town and he was finding it harder to breathe. He tugged his cape around him, shielding his face so he could at least breathe, though the smoke still stung at his eyes making him wince. His will to not let a single free soul go kept him moving forward.

"Your Majesty, over here!"

Vector turned towards the cry as his eyes squeezed shut against the smoke. He was coughing slightly as he moved through the thick smog towards his men. When he reached the other soldiers the air was suddenly clean; his lungs gasped greedily for the air like it was the first breath of his life. Violet eyes watered as the fresh air cleansed them, his vision blurred slightly as he looked around. The ground he now stood on was green, the vegetation under his feet not even singed in a small radius around them. In the center of the circle a teen laid, curled into a ball and passed out.

"He's alive but unresponsive, should we just put him out of his misery?"

Vector's mouth opened to instinctively give the order of killing the teen, but something was pulling against him. He felt his heart stop briefly for a moment, a pain that pulled against his soul, choking out the very order before the words formed on his lips.

He stepped closer to the teen; bending down one arm rested across his knees as he moved the comatose teen with the other. The teen's red hair fell away from his face revealing the long purple tattoo over his left eye and continuing down his cheek. His jaw slipped loose and the gasp died in his throat. He pushed himself from the ground dusted off his pants.

"No, that won't be necessary. Take him back to my vessel, and lock him up."

Vector strolled down to the cells in the belly of his personal vessel in his fleet of war ships. The guards unlocked the iron door without word or direction, as they were used to it by now. Vector moved into the cell simply waving his hand over his shoulder and the heavy door slid shut behind him.

He bent down, running a nail over the face of the sleeping boy on the ground. A fire mage, he couldn't have been more lucky if he made a deal with Lady Luck herself (and he knows, he had done that dance twice before.) It was a beautiful war prize – one that seemed to fall into his lap by accident.

"It's time to wake up," he muttered, his voice was thick and choking as he tried to gently wake the mage.

The boy stirred against the straw he was laying on. His eyes rolling as they tried to get used to the dim light in the cell as the only light available came from a small port hole. A soft grunt passed over his lips as he struggled to push himself off the ground. He went to speak but his throat ran dry, his tongue running over his lips but it was dry too.

"What's your name?"

He coughed hoarsely, his eyes meeting the king's. Vector shrunk under the blaze of his gaze, the same pull against his soul he felt earlier consuming him once more.

"IV." He choked out before coughing again.

"Interesting name," Vector mused as he pulled his canteen from his side, offering it to IV.

IV took the container, consuming the water faster than he could swallow, some liquid dribbling down his chin. A sharp gasp left his lips as he pulled the empty bottle away in an attempt to fill his lungs again with air.

"Where are my brothers?" IV asked as he handed the canteen back to Vector.

"Brothers?" A smile twisted on his face as he knelt down in front of IV. He reached out and ran his nail over the tattooed cheek; the crimson eyes narrowed under the touch, IV's hand snaring Vector's wrist causing the king to laugh. He twisted his wrist free, taking IV's in his grip. "You're not just any old mage are you?" a dry chuckle cracked in his throat as his fingers pressed down into the space between the bones on the top of his wrist. IV wailed sharply as he tried to jerk his hand away. Vector continued to grip the wrist harder, running his thumb over the area causing IV to shutter as pain ran through his body. Vector felt the skin under his thumb heat up as a pale lavender gem appeared imbedded in his flesh. "You're a damn Guardian," he laughed again, a darkness consuming him. "This isn't even luck anymore. It's fate."

IV was finally able to pull away, scooting as far back in the cell as he could to put space between himself and the Madness King. "W-what do you mean fate?"

Vector stood up off the cold cell floor, brushing the straw away that stuck to his knees. He shrugged, seemingly ignoring IV's question. "Your brothers, were they with you in that village?"

"I'm not answering you," IV's eyes narrowed as his hand clamped down on the gem around his wrist, as if to protect it from Vector.

"It doesn't matter," Vector shook his head and pulled IV to his feet; slamming him against the wall. His hand covered the sorcerer's own, applying more pressure to the gem. A pained cry passed over IV's lips as his knees shook underneath him, "They'll feel this won't they?" All of Vector's features darkened in shadow, his eyes growing cold. He watched the tears form in the crimson pools, the fire all but extinguished and clouded in pain.

"They'll come find you. And they'll bring _It_ with them."

The pair of brothers fell to their knees as they collapsed on the cave floor, hands clutched around their right wrists.

"Brother, IV is-" the youngest brother winced as he felt the yellow gem under his hand burn hot.

"I know." V sat back on his feet, ignoring his own burn and pulled his brother into his arms. He ran his long fingers through the pink curls in a shallow attempt to sooth his youngest brother.

"We shouldn't have left him."

"I know."

"He's pigheaded," a voice came from deep within the cave. Both brothers looked into the darkness, eyes meeting with a cold red glowing pair, "it's better that you left him, or you all would have been captured."

"We need to save him!" III protested into the darkness. He went to stand but V managed to hold him in place.

"We will with time, my sons."


	2. The Other King

When he was still in the village there were whispers in the air; whispers that warned against man they called the King of Madness and his march across any land that came before him. Warnings that were brushed away and ignored by IV and his two brothers who had found refuge in such a small village. They were a quiet and simple folk, barely remembered by the king that governed them – except during tax time of course. It seemed like such a logical place to hide and keep safe the very thing they swore their life to protect.

That was all erased that day he was captured. The first ships had showed in silence the night before; soldiers pouring out in onslaught against a defenseless town. The soldiers had no armors of their own as they moved undetected through the streets, entering homes and murdering without cause.

It was IV's turn to stand watch, but he felt in such an easy going place it was pointless, taking the chance to sleep in front of the hut he was meant to guard – the hut that held the weapon from the heavens. During the attack he was slipping in and out of sleep, finding it uncomfortable to properly rest on the bale of hay he was perched on. He was sure he would have been a deadman if It didn't wake him in time.

_IV, there is an evil here._

He heard It in his head, jarring him instantly from his half-sleep. The gem imbedded in his wrist glowing white hot as he jumped to his feet. By then screams had woken other townspeople who were flooding into the streets around him as the sun crept over the hills. The army had surrounded them and without wasting time started slicing at the people with their broad swords, some even turning on their own brothers in arms blinded by blood lust.

As the villagers' screams and cries in agony fell onto his ears over and over, compressing themselves into his brain he felt his instincts take over. His body surged in an energy he couldn't control, the very thing he was created for. The tattoo over his eye glowed bright to match the gem in his wrist as a seal appeared on the ground at his feet, spreading to cover him and the hut where his brothers and the weapon slept. (But of course the commotion had woken them as well.)

The heat was intense, his tanned skin warming as the ground outside the seal combusted instantly. The screams from the villagers didn't stop as they burned alive. IV closed his eyes, the only solace to the noise was that the enemy's cries had joined them.

"Brother IV! Stop, we need to leave!" He remembered hearing III calling out to him from porch of the hut. He was wrapped in a cloak that matched his eyes, their eldest brother behind him with the weapon.

His response though wasn't his own, it wasn't even his voice.

_Flee. I will hold them off, it is our destiny. Protect the weapon at all costs._

Nasch dipped the cloth into the basin at the bedside; a heavy sigh fell from is lungs as he wrung out the excess water before applying it to his twin's forehead. He wiped away the sweat that beaded on her temples before leaving the cold cloth to rest there.

Two nights had passed since Merag had collapsed at the ball, crying out in painful groans as she held her head. _It's hot, brother. So hot. The village, it's under attack. Lives are turned to ash in their wake._

Merag always had the gift of clairvoyance since birth and only strengthened by the church as she was brought up to be High Priestess. But Nasch had never seen her in so much pain as a vision of the future came to her; and certainly there was never one to induce a coma. The healers had little they could do. They filed in and out, dressing her in new garments and bathing her in oils and burning herbs to ease her pain, but she still remained asleep.

The heavy door to the healing chambers opened and Nasch didn't even bother looking up assuming it was another healer to try to tend to her. Only when the foot steps stopped in the middle of the room did he raise his gaze from his sister.

"Your Majesty," the blond bowed as he caught his king's attention.

"Kaito, please," Nasch sighed again, scrubbing his face with his hands, "we're alone, can you please just use my name?" He wasn't even half as irritated as he sounded but the lack of sleep over the past three days was starting to show, even in someone who held himself as well as Nasch did.

A smirk slipped across Kaito's face as he nodded, continuing the rest of the way across the room. "Yes of course, _Nasch_." The name fell from his lips in a sarcastic tone, one Nasch even found the strength to reward in a dry chuckle. "Sir Durbe has returned from a scout of the village. The village itself and the surrounding hillside down to the water was scorched. There were no survivors."

Nasch's fingers played with one of his sister's curls – a nervous habit he would admit, but not sure why he was toying with her hair as opposed to his own. "Any idea who attacked them?"

Kaito shook his head. "No, there were no kingdom crests to be found. The heat had even deformed the enemy's weapons."

"Thank you, Kaito. You may leave now."

Kaito side stepped the bed in protest, taking his king's free hand he pulled him to his feet. "Not without you."

Nasch's hand slipped from Kaito's, his knees buckled wanting to sit back down but he remained standing as he stared into the steel cold eyes. "I need to stay with Merag."

"You need to rest."

"I'm fine."

A smile once again slipped across his face – a sad one this time though, as he shook his head in disagreement, "No, you're not, _Your Majesty._" Kaito teased as he slid one of his hands up to Nasch's cheek, his thumb stroking over the tired bags under his dead royal eyes. "She'll be fine."

All Nasch could do was nod, defeated by his own exhaustion. He leaned into Kaito's soft touch, his eyes slipping shut. "A few hours."

Kaito leaned in, his lips pressing against Nasch's forehead in a gentle kiss, "A few hours." He agreed before leading Nasch away to his own chambers to sleep.

IV sat on the bench in his cell, his face pressed against the wood siding of the ship, as he held a fist full of hay in his hand lighting it straw by straw before tossing them out the port hole into the ocean below. It had been a few days, IV was sure of that even if he lost count of the number from sleeping most of the time to keep himself from boredom. He had contemplated burning the whole ship at one point to amuse himself, but that thought disappeared when he remembered he couldn't swim.

Then there was his captor – if he really was _the_ King of Madness IV didn't see it. When he was awake Vector seemed to make his way into the cells, personally bringing IV his meals to eat. IV didn't know any kings, but he knew they had servants to do such work as feeding prisoners.

But perhaps that did make him mad.

When Vector visited him later that day most of the straw was burnt to ash as he laid stretched out on the planked floor, staring blankly at the ceiling. The sun had already began to fall over the horizon making visibility minimal in the cell.

"Now where are you going to sleep?" Vector asked taking note of the ashy floors.

IV grunted and rolled over to face Vector, who was standing in the still open doorway a plate of bread and gravy in his hand. IV pushed himself into a sitting position as Vector entered and sat down next to him. He muttered a 'thanks' and 'I'm fine' before he began to eat.

Vector sat in silence as the sorcerer ate as always. Watching him in the dimming light as it bounced off his tanned skin. "You're not originally from that village, are you?"

IV discarded the dish to the side when he was finished, wiping his mouth with his dirty sleeve. "If you must know, no, I'm not."

Vector nodded. He didn't suspect for a moment he was, the Guardians were rumored to be nomadic, roaming the Earth to protect the weapon. IV's features were still curious to him, his skin darker and hair wild as the fire that burned inside him. But still he seemed well kept and groomed for someone who lived without ever having a home.

"We should be getting back to my palace in the morning."

"Good." IV muttered, not that he thought his living conditions would improve. But at least he would be stationary at that point, making it easier for his brothers to locate him.

"Where are you going to sleep? You've burnt up your bed."

"It's not exactly entertaining down here."

Vector chuckled at the comment. "Would you like to come up topside, and sleep in an actual bed?"

"What?" IV practically stuttered not believing the offer he was given.

Vector stood up off the floor, holding a hand out to IV, "Would you like to sleep in an actual bed?"

Crimson eyes blinked a few times, confusion still washing around inside him as he took Vector's hand in helping him off the floor. He nodded his head slowly, not sure how to verbalize agreeing to such an offer.

"Very well." Vector didn't let go of his hand as he lead him up the stairs into the main quarters of the vessel. "Of course, this being a ship beds aren't something you have extras of," he chuckled as he pushed open a door, "we will have to share mine. It should be big enough."

IV followed inside, the offer not sounding as strange to him as it should have. He had shared a bed with his brothers countless times for warmth or convenience. This shouldn't be much different. He was pulled from his thoughts as clean clothing was presented to him by one of Vector's servants. He took it, holding it out in front of him it unfolded revealing that it was nothing more than a pair of cotton pants.

"Go ahead and change," Vector said motioning to the changing screen as he began to disrobe himself in the middle of the chamber, "I don't need your dirty clothing in my bed."

IV nodded and quickly disappeared and changed, the soft cotton caressing his skin in a way he didn't know clothing could. It felt expensive, but didn't look like anything other than a plain pair of pants. He washed his face and hands in a basin he found behind the screen, letting out a sharp gasp, not expecting the salt that bit into his eyes.

When he emerged, Vector was already sinking into the bed under the heavy duvet. His own movements were stiff as he walked to the other side of the bed, sliding in under the covers himself. The plush bed all but swallowed him whole as the stiffness from sleeping on the floor for days melted from him. He sighed contently, settling further into the mattress.

"It's nice," IV murmured, sleep finding him quickly as his head fell to the side to look at Vector in the almost dark room.

A faint smile fell over Vector's face. "That's good."

When IV woke in the morning he felt Vector's chest pressed against his back, arms wrapped tightly around his middle in almost a possessive manner. Vector had his nose buried between his shoulder blades. "So warm," he heard him mutter in his sleep.

Every neuron on IV's brain should have been screaming at him to pull away, but he couldn't find it in him. He felt his own insides melt, and Vector in all his sleepy haze was right – it was _warm._


	3. Old Friends Become Ex's Again

III removed his hood as he entered the cave, shaking his head as the soft curls fell to frame his face. His eyes fell on his brother who was sitting by a small fire, trying – but mostly failing, to keep it lit. III sighed as he walked over to his brother and unceremoniously dropped two hares next to him.

"I'm sick of rabbit, can't you do something about this?" III huffed as he stared into the darkness of the cave.

"What do you expect of me, a feast meant for kings?" The weapon answered.

"No. Something less gamey would be a good start."

"Hush, III. You sound like IV."

"Maybe I miss his loud mouth," III groaned as he watched the fire fizzle to nothing more than smoldering ash, "who we apparently took for granted. We need to save him!"

V fell back, his arms behind him in support as he gave up on keeping the fire ablaze. "His soul is still moving too much, there's no point on even trying to locate him right now."

"That's correct, V," It confirmed as it moved from the shadows to sit between the brothers. It lifted one of its hands, long fingers twitched and the fire ignited, blazing just as bright as if IV had done it himself. "Whoever has him, they'll stop sooner or later."

"I hope so." The youngest brother murmured as he pulled his knees close to his chest and rested his chin there. He watched V begin to skin the hares; he may have been hungry but the sight of eating rabbit _again_ was quickly changing that fact.

"We should at least let the king know what happened to his village." III spoke after a long silence causing the other two to look at him. "I mean, it's only right. Apologize for what happened."

V smiled sadly. "While that might be a good gesture, we don't know anything. We don't even know who attacked."

"All those people who needlessly died," III murmured as his eyes fell shut in silent prayer for the village.

"III is right, V. You should go to the king."

"But why?"

"Because King Nasch governs over those lands. And you know what he has."

V threw the hare meat in a stew with some herbs and vegetables from outside the cave. "I see. I'll travel there in the morning, then."

As the fleet of war ships approached the island Vector joined IV at the window in his chambers. The sun was shining behind his twisted white castle, casting it in a dark shadow down across the dense forest to the shore. Vector rested his chin on the sorcerer's shoulder. "There are a still few things I need to take care of, you can wait for me here."

IV nodded as Vector stepped away and exited the room. He made his way up to the deck of his ship and immediately to where his trusted knight stood at the bow.

"Alit," Vector said as his knight turned to face him.

"Your Majesty," Alit bent at the waist in a deep bow, his arm over his chest.

Vector nodded and walked around his knight. He wrapped one arm around the stem of the hull, his other hand resting on the rail as he stared off at his kingdom. It had been months since he last laid eyes on his palace that was faced with white marble. Red accents ran along the tops of the walls, striking against the trees.

It was a strange feeling he had as he watched it come closer on the horizon. Usually he preferred to be away, the thrill of war always calling to him. But now he had almost yearned to be home.

"Alit, I want you to see to it that the servant in my chambers is removed immediately once we dock at port. I've found him quite unsatisfactory as of late."

Alit nodded as he watched his king's back, all the muscles along his bare shoulders were tense, and so was his arm as his fingers dug into the stem. "What would you like to be done with him?"

Vector shrugged his shoulders, finally able to tear his gaze from the palace as he turned back around to face Alit. "Send him to be executed, like I said, he's been less than favorable."

"Yes, Your Majesty."

"I want the servants quarters cleaned out by the time I am done showing the Guardian around. And find some fine clothing for him, if you would, please."

-+-

It shouldn't have come as a shock to V that when he showed up in the king's court unannounced that Nasch didn't have the time to be seen. The air weighed heavy in the throne room as he looked around from the place his feet were rooted in the center of the room. The dark feeling came from the one of the smaller less ornate thrones – a queen? No, even V knew that Nasch hadn't wed anyone yet, and that it was just him and his twin sister that ruled over the kingdom.

V finally unhooked his feet from where he had unknowingly anchored himself, walking towards one of the soldiers that guarded the door. "If His Majesty isn't available, may I speak with Lord," V paused for a moment, the name escaping him. "Lord Kaito Tenjo."

The two guards looked at each other, before the one he had spoken to nodded and left the throne room. A soft smile slid across V's face as he nodded and returned back to where he was previously standing.

"When they told me I had a visitor, you were the last one to cross my mind," Kaito said, as he entered the room he waved off the guards who took their post outside in the hall instead.

V turned to face the familiar voice, his long silver hair flowing and following his movements behind him. "I have terrible news to tell the king about one of his villages-"

"We already know," Kaito said cutting him off. He stayed on the other side of the room unwilling to close the space between them, "the princess had a premonition about it."

V looked back at the throne, the cold chill of death began to seep out of it and wrap around him. "She's not well now, is she?"

"That's none of your business."

"Perhaps not."

Kaito's fists balled at his sides, "sorry that you had to come all this way with old news, but you can leave now."

V raised his eyebrows, seemingly ignoring Kaito's last statement. "You could heal her, why haven't you?"

Kaito's eyes narrowed as he lunged forward, balling the cloth of V's deep blue cloak in his fists. Rage was burning in his eyes, melting their usual cold gaze and setting it ablaze. "That's not in my job description anymore."

V stood unmoved as he stared down at his former friend. "No, you're too busy pretending you're just as human as them."

_Crack_. Kaito's fist hit squarely into his jaw, reddening the pale flesh. "Don't talk to me like you're my superior." One hand twisted tighter into the cloak as he took hold of V's chin between two fingers, yanking the taller man down to his level. "Your only existence is to serve me, act like it."

The sorcerer's face was as obstinate as ever despite the pain that started to radiate from Kaito's nails digging into his flesh and the awkward position he was bent in. The heat that raged between the two of them was full of an anger and distaste that could set the whole room on fire as V continued to defiantly stare at Kaito. Too much unspoken pain and betrayal circled around the pair over the years. The only logical thing V could do – and certainly didn't make the slightest effort to stop when his long fingers hooked around small hips, continued anyway as the muffled protests fell from Kaito's mouth as he yanked him closer and his lips fell over his.

When Vector opened up the door to his private chambers IV was just as blown away with the richness and over the top decor as he was with the rest of the palace. He wasn't about to pretend he understood anything Vector was planning the last day, but he wasn't about to question it and get thrown back into the dungeon either.

The room was adorned in thick red curtains and bedding. Gold leafing wrapped itself up the tall bedposts that held more blood red cloth up in a canopy that cascaded down and skirted the floor. It was a warm room, welcoming IV in – certainly not something he was expecting from a man dubbed the Madness King. Only Vector's chuckle when he caught him staring pulled him out of his daze.

"You'll be sleeping here," Vector said as he opened another door, revealing a conjoined room with nothing more than a simple bed in simple linens; but of course, it was still better than straw on a stone floor.

IV nodded and stepped inside the small room. It was cramped, but still well ventilated with a large window that looked out over the undeveloped forest that seemed to blanket the whole island.

"Are there any villages under those trees?" IV asked as he felt Vector's presence behind him. Villages would make it easier for his brothers to seek shelter before finally rescuing him.

"No, everyone lives in the lower streets inside of the palace walls." Vector answered with a laugh, "old tales speak of an evil that lives in the hills. Don't know how much I believe that, though."

IV turned around to face Vector. Evil? That sounded more like his kingdom's curse, but nothing Vector did seemed to fit that mold of Madness. Something that continued to ring true as he presented IV with a rather expensive looking change of clothes.

He took the clothes from the king, they felt silky and expensive in his hands and embroidered with an intricate gold pattern. The fabric was soft against his callosed hands, and as much as he wanted to feel the fabric hug the rest of his body he found himself handing them back to Vector instead.

"I can't wear these."

Vector shook his head and sat down at the foot of the bed, "think of them as a gift."

"Isn't being confined to this room, and not the cellar gift enough?"

"Change, IV."

IV nodded and quickly changed, discarding the pants Vector had given him the night before and slipping into the silk robes. He slid onto the bed, back propped up against the headboard; confusion started to sink into him as he noticed Vector had made no move to leave the cramped quarters.

"Tell me about this supposed evil, I'm curious."

Vector smirked and turned on the bed, pulling his legs up under himself to better face the sorcerer.

"I'm not sure how much of it I believe, but I do know any armies my father ever sent into the forest never returned."

IV hugged his knees to his chest as he listened to the tales. Even if Vector didn't believe them, IV did. He knew the stories well. He spent the rest of the day listening to the king tell him the old tales; stories of an evil and a chaos that blackened the hills of his kingdom. There was a sickness in that forest that could drive even the strongest will mad. It was a shaman, a witch king that cursed the land hundreds of years ago.

And IV knew one thing for sure as Vector was whisked off that evening to attend a celebration – he knew the last thing that could happen was his brothers come to this island with God's weapon in tow.


	4. The Darkness Approaches

Kaito twisted his fist in V's cloak as he began to pull the taller man through the halls. His face was red out of a mixture of embarrassment and anger. The mage was stumbling behind his quick pace, but he had no plans to slow down. At the end of the hall he threw him against the wall with enough force to send vibrations through the stone face.

V's whole body flinched at the pain that shook through his body, his head ringing and vision slightly blurring. Kaito yanked him forward again, their faces nearly touching as he could feel the other's hot breath on his skin.

"Don't ever do that again," Kaito hissed, his voice rough and biting.

The sorcerer straightened himself, grasping Kaito's hand to untangle it from his cloak. He towered over Kaito, his gaze just as harsh as Kaito's spoken word. "Understood."

Steel eyes narrowed as he stepped away, "you need to leave."

"To inform the king of what happened wasn't my only business here."

A low chuckle bellowed out of him as Kaito ripped his hand back, crossing his arms over his chest. "And what was your other business? To get me to come back with you? Forget it."

"You don't belong here."

"I don't belong with murders either."

"That doesn't weigh on me, we exist to protect you, not some human."

"Haruto wasn't just some human."

V clicked his tongue. That name, that person, that _thing_, he still hated it even after all the years had passed. Humanity was weak, it was the one thing It had always taught him. And Kaito, a perfect being created in God's Eye, was standing in front of him corrupted by such a frail disease like mortality.

"Are they not just some humans either?" V asked as he motioned to the room behind them. He could feel the same darkness of death that crept around him in the throne room earlier; the only logical thing to assume was that the house of healing was behind the closed doors.

Kaito's fists balled at his sides, shaking as the anger started to flow from him; the feelings of betrayal resurfacing after being carefully buried for so long.

"What are you talking about?"

"I know you can sense the princess is on the edge of death. Do you not care for them like you did that boy?"

"Of course I do!"

"Then why haven't you healed her?"

Kaito fell silent, his shoulders dropping as the anger flushed from his body in one swift movement following all the air from his lungs as he exhaled heavily.

"I told you, I can't do that."

"That's a-" V cut off his own thought, his eyebrows raising as a smirk slid across his face, "The king doesn't know what you are, does he?"

"No, of course not. No matter what you think, I'm not stupid." Kaito sighed once more and turned toward the door, "if you heal her, we can talk about me returning with you."

V nodded, feeling his instincts to do as instructed (no matter how much he didn't agree with them) as he followed Kaito into the healing chambers. The peaceful air he expected to be greeted with was thick with death instead. The king, who was sitting next to his sister's bedside, didn't notice them enter. In his hand he held hers delicately as his thumb brushed over the fragile skin. Even V felt his heart tugged at as he watched the pair. It was just a premonition, wasn't it? How did it leave her in such a poor state.

"Nasch," Kaito stepped forward first, swiftly moving to the king's side. He put a hand on either of Nasch's shoulders and the king slumped into the half embrace, his eyes sliding shut.

"Who is he, Kaito?"

"He's a water mage from the west," Kaito answered as one hand moved to comb the messy purple curls from Nasch's face, setting them behind his ear, "He's here by my request to heal the princess."

V stepped forward, with his hand over his heart he bowed deeply in front of Nasch, "The name is V, Your Majesty."

Nasch sat up, a little more alert as he shrugged Kaito from him. "A sorcerer? You know healing magic?"

V's deep blue eyes didn't meet Nasch's, instead watching Kaito intensely, "A bit, I was taught by the best."

Nasch nodded, head clouded with exhaustion and desperation for his sister; he motioned to one of the healers who brought over a chair for V to sit across the bed from him. V was quick to sit down as he took the princess' free hand and laid his other hand on her forehead which was ice cold. He frowned, she was so close to death now. He wanted to be as quick as he could so he could continue to talk to Kaito about returning with him.

He took a deep breath filling his lungs as the green tattoo over his right eye glowed bright; the gem in his wrist was pressed against the princess' forehead as his eyes slipped shut. Color began to wash back into her pale and tired flesh as the gentle magic began to flow through her. His previous assumptions that it was more than a bad premonition were confirmed when he felt a resistance in the dark refusing to let go of Merag.

_The High Priestess is mine!_

There was a surge of the dark energy that sparked through V as he let out a pained gasp, both of his hands flying off Merag as if he was shocked. Fear washed into him as his blue eyes widened and looked up at Kaito for guidance.

"What's wrong?" Nasch asked as he too let go of his sister, feeling a dull ache in his own arms.

"I-I heard a voice," V answered even though his gaze never left Kaito, "as if something possessed her."

Kaito's brow scrunched together in confusion as he moved around the bed to V's side. "Try again," he instructed as he leaned over V, his hand resting on the sorcerer's shoulder.

_I'll help you this time._ V heard Kaito's voice in his head clearly.

_Nasch will notice the difference in strength, he'll know it's you._

_No he won't._

"Come now, V. I know you can drive the darkness from her," Kaito said, his voice was calm and smooth to wash the worry that was quick to form in Nasch.

V nodded, placing his hands on Merag once more. This time, as his eyes slipped shut and the tattoo across his eye glowed, a seal appeared on the floor beneath the bed, spreading to cover the four of them in its protective circle. There wasn't even a fight this time against the shadow inside the princess as it dissolved in the light coursing through her body with no protest.

As the seal faded around them, Merag's eyes slipped open, her head falling to look at her brother as the life began to creep back into her ruby eyes. She smiled warmly at him as she noticed the relief push itself from him in the form of tears. She took his hand in hers letting out a tired laugh.

"Idiot, you worry to much." She teased and the king laughed as well, wiping the tears away before they fell.


End file.
